A survey conducted in June for the Educational Testing Service (ETS) indicates that a majority of Americans believe that public schools do not adequately challenge students. The study, Keeping Our Edge: Americans Speak on Education and Competitiveness, also shows that the public’s view of the nation’s schools has remained largely unchanged over the last six years.

According to the ETS survey, most Americans believe that public school standards must be higher in order to prepare the next generation of students for success in a globalized economy. Many of those surveyed believe that particular emphasis needs to be placed on math and science, which are viewed as being central to the country’s economic future.

FINDINGS

The American Economy in a Global Context

• Seventy-one percent of Americans believe that public high schools in the U.S., when compared to their foreign counterparts, are falling short in efforts to prepare students for highly technical jobs.
• Two-thirds of Americans believe that failure to reform the education system will compromise the country’s ability to be globally competitive in the next decade.
• Fifty-eight percent of Americans believe that public schools are falling behind in their efforts to prepare students with the training and skills they’ll need to secure a job.
  

Emphasis on Math and Science

• Seventy-two percent of Americans believe that it is very important that students take the most advanced math and science classes that they are eligible to take during every year of high school.
• Seventy-six percent of Americans believe that if students today do not improve their skills in math, science, and engineering, they risk becoming the first generation of Americans who are worse off economically than their parents.
• Forty percent of the general public and 60 percent of "opinion leaders" believe that math, science, and technology skills will be the most important factors contributing to America’s ability to compete in the global economy.
  

A Call for Reform

• Ninety-three percent of Americans are in favor of increasing parental involvement in their children’s education.
• Ninety-two percent of Americans want to place greater emphasis on work–study programs and vocational training in order to prepare students for careers.
• Seventy-three percent of Americans want to improve teaching quality by dramatically increasing teacher salaries to attract more well-qualified teachers.

Keeping Our Edge: Americans Speak on Education and Competitiveness (PDF) is available online from ETS.

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DID YOU KNOW?

• Only eleven percent of those surveyed feel that academic expectations are set high and that high school students are being significantly challenged.
• Americans give the “average public school” a 2.1 (C) grade point average, but rank their own school districts higher, at a 3.0 (B) average.
• Only five percent of Americans believe that students are putting forth maximum effort in school.